Here's another Guild Sparker, this time for Domri Rade. Those who read his story know that Domri's spark ignited during the Burying, a Gruul tradition intended to teach participants to cherish their lives.
Domri, Gruul UrchinRG
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman Bloodrush - (R/G), Discard ~: Target attacking creature gets +2/+1 until end of turn. 1RG: Exile Domri from your graveyard, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control. Activate this ability only anytime you could cast a sorcery.
2/1
I like the idea of using a Gruul guild mechanic on Domri, the very mechanic Gruul had when Domri was first introduced in Gatecrash no less. Domri himself is a bit of a runt due to still being a teenager, so his Bloodrush ability doesn't provide much, but it doesn't cost much either. Originally his spark ability was an upkeep trigger that checked if he was in your graveyard, but that would effectively make him a 1-drop planeswalker, so I opted for the safer approach here.
Domri, Clan Beastcaller (R/G) Legendary Planeswalker - Domri
+1: ~ deals 1 damage to each opponent. For each player dealt damage this way, add R or G.
-3: Create a 4/4 red and green Beast creature token with trample, then destroy up to one target artifact or enchantment.
-X: Search your library for a creature card with converted mana cost X or less and put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle your library. That creature gains haste until end of turn. Return it to its owner's hand at the beginning of the next end step.
4
The first ability works well with Bloodthirst while also ramping you mana, especially in multiplayer. The second ability represents well the destructive, chaotic nature of the Gruul while also playing into Domri Rade's shtick as a beastcaller. The third ability is a fun little tutor that cheats the creature onto the battlefield for a turn, not unlike what Nahiri, the Harbinger does.
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
The creature side, while flavorful, has a few big issues. First, while green and red each get a level of recursion (emphasis on returning to hand), this kind of play-from-grave stuff breaks the color pie, especially since the Gruul only get a very small amount of recursion in the first place. Second, it goes against the entire point of flipwalkers from a design standpoint, namely that the creature side acts as a balancing mechanism. Every other flipwalker has an activated or triggered ability that allows for some level of interaction (with wiggle room), but this Domri doesn't even have to enter the battlefield, just discarded-to his own ability, no less. That just leaves mid-combat graveyard hate and those ever-elusive Stifle effects as the only ways to interact with him. I would recommend going back to the drawing board altogether in search of another way to represent Domri's claustrophobia.
The planeswalker side is all too busy for what is effectively a 3 mana planeswalker. Both the +1 and the -3 should really only keep one of the two abilities you're giving each one. Pinging and mana generation are both great +1 options on their own, but they're funky and a little confusing when you staple them together like that. The -3 is altogether way too powerful for even an ability ascribed to a 5 mana planeswalker. How many small minus abilities have both token generation and removal rolled into one? Again, choose one of the two effects for the ability between making a 3/3 (to conform to the more common token) beast token or artifact/enchantment removal, and not in a modal sense, either. Just like Ral, you have to keep the cost of the planeswalker you want to make in mind, especially if you want to make the transformation condition really easy like this. Also, there's nothing wrong with a little simplicity. Don't feel like you need to compensate by adding unnecessary extra text to your cards.
Domri, Gruul UrchinRG
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman Bloodrush - (R/G), Discard ~: Target attacking creature gets +2/+1 until end of turn. 1RG: Exile Domri from your graveyard, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control. Activate this ability only anytime you could cast a sorcery.
2/1
I like the idea of using a Gruul guild mechanic on Domri, the very mechanic Gruul had when Domri was first introduced in Gatecrash no less. Domri himself is a bit of a runt due to still being a teenager, so his Bloodrush ability doesn't provide much, but it doesn't cost much either. Originally his spark ability was an upkeep trigger that checked if he was in your graveyard, but that would effectively make him a 1-drop planeswalker, so I opted for the safer approach here.
Domri, Clan Beastcaller (R/G) Legendary Planeswalker - Domri
+1: ~ deals 1 damage to each opponent. For each player dealt damage this way, add R or G.
-3: Create a 4/4 red and green Beast creature token with trample, then destroy up to one target artifact or enchantment.
-X: Search your library for a creature card with converted mana cost X or less and put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle your library. That creature gains haste until end of turn. Return it to its owner's hand at the beginning of the next end step.
4
I juat want to point out that you seem to entirely ignore that the recursion ability also applies when the planeswalker is put back into the graveyard. Have two of these in your graveyard and you get as many 4/4s for three... and you need only one of these in your graveyard to tutor any number of creatures out of your library as long as they cost 4 or less at a cost of three mana a card - not mentioning the dash attack.
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Planar Chaos was not a mistake neither was it random. You might want to look at it again.
[thread=239793][Game] Level Up - Creature[/thread]
"Activate this ability only if CARDNAME wasn't placed in the graveyard this turn."
Actually, this is even more flavorful, come to think of it.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Card advantage is not the same thing as card draw. Something for 2B cannot be strictly worse than something for BBB or 3BB. If you're taking out Swords to Plowshares for Plummet, you're a fool. Stop doing these things!
"Activate this ability only if CARDNAME wasn't placed in the graveyard this turn."
Actually, this is even more flavorful, come to think of it.
It's still very difficult to interact with, still gives his user little reason to cast him, and still is almost impossible to get rid of without graveyard hate (he even gets around Grafdigger's Cage, for goodness sake). This design has lots of problems beyond how enormously overpowered it is.
Now that I think of it, the graveyard isn't even the most flavorful way to acting out Domri's spark ignition. He didn't actually die nor really come that close to death in the end. His Claustrophobia just kicked in, that's all.
The creature side, while flavorful, has a few big issues. First, while green and red each get a level of recursion (emphasis on returning to hand), this kind of play-from-grave stuff breaks the color pie, especially since the Gruul only get a very small amount of recursion in the first place.
Technically, red and green both do get creatures able to recur themselves: Phoenixes for red, and green gets various Elementals able to recur themselves like Vengevine and Phytotitan. But I can see how a repeatedly recurrable Planeswalker is developmentally a problem. The easiest fix I can think of is that if the PW half leaves the battlefield, you exile him, or maybe shuffle him into your library, instead. That, or Gruul Urchin does something similar to what I originally thought the Origins sparker legends were going to do: you exile him from the graveyard, then tutor up a Domri planeswalker card. But I'd rather keep the card a DFC if possible.
As for the PW face, I understand the balance issues. The easiest fix there is to simply raise the cost of the transformation ability, since I feel each ability conveys a flavorful aspect of Domri and the Gruul. However, raising the cost also makes Clan Beastcaller less of an ideal Bloodthirst enabler. Not that he has to enable every Gruul mechanic at once, but it's nice when a Guild planeswalker is able to play well with all of their Guild's mechanics, as Ral, Izzet Viceroy and Vraska, Golgari Queen do.
The only ability I might agree is too complex is the second ability; if I had to sacrifice one of the two halves, it would be the removal half, as the Beast token plays into Domri being a Clan Beastcaller. It's okay for a PW to create a unique type of token, and a 4/4 RG Beast with trample seems like the kind of token the Gruul could easily get to create with a couple cards. For example:
Beastbash4RG
Sorcery
Choose target creature an opponent controls, then create a 4/4 red and green Beast creature token with trample. The token fights that creature.
Beastbreak4RG
Sorcery
Destroy target artifact or land, then create a 4/4 red and green Beast creature token with trample.
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
The graveyard recursion ability seems unsalvageable. Its off flavor, its off color, and is broken as all heck because you can just keep using all of his loyalty then bring him right back.
Unlike the other flip walkers it wasn't a single intense moment that ignited Domri's spark, it was the building terror of being buried alive. To capture this same flavor you can take several turns to transform, this allows you to significantly push the walker side while keeping the creature side 1 mana. Something like "Domri, Gruul Urchin doesn't untap during your untap step. At the begining of your upkeep if Domri is tapped put a something counter on him. If he has two or more counters exile Domri, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control."
The graveyard recursion ability seems unsalvageable. Its off flavor, its off color, and is broken as all heck because you can just keep using all of his loyalty then bring him right back.
Unlike the other flip walkers it wasn't a single intense moment that ignited Domri's spark, it was the building terror of being buried alive. To capture this same flavor you can take several turns to transform, this allows you to significantly push the walker side while keeping the creature side 1 mana. Something like "Domri, Gruul Urchin doesn't untap during your untap step. At the begining of your upkeep if Domri is tapped put a something counter on him. If he has two or more counters exile Domri, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control."
This. Solves the myriad problems inherent to being an ability that activates while in the graveyard, and it alights with the games actual mechanical depiction of Claustrophobia.
The graveyard recursion ability seems unsalvageable. Its off flavor, its off color, and is broken as all heck because you can just keep using all of his loyalty then bring him right back.
I'm going to contest you on a couple points here:
No, it's not off flavor. Domri was buried alive, as though it was his grave. The whole point of the Burying is to let you know what it's like to be dead so you can fully appreciate being alive. The Gruul feel that's what separates them from the Golgari, their appreciation for life and being alive.
As I just pointed out, red and green do get creatures with the ability to recur themselves. Red gets Phoenixes, green gets creatures like Vengevine and Phytotitan. Is Domri's recursion flavored differently? Yes, it is. But that doesn't mean it's out of color pie. Heck, red got Unearth in Shards of Alara, and red and green both got Persist in Shadowmoor and Undying in Dark Ascension. So obviously red and green can and do get recursion.
Now the balancing issues I acknowledge are a problem, and I'm looking for a solution that doesn't sacrifice the overall theme and flavor of the character. If it isn't going to capture Domri's story correctly, it might as well not be Domri.
Unlike the other flip walkers it wasn't a single intense moment that ignited Domri's spark, it was the building terror of being buried alive. To capture this same flavor you can take several turns to transform, this allows you to significantly push the walker side while keeping the creature side 1 mana. Something like "Domri, Gruul Urchin doesn't untap during your untap step. At the begining of your upkeep if Domri is tapped put a something counter on him. If he has two or more counters exile Domri, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control."
This. Solves the myriad problems inherent to being an ability that activates while in the graveyard, and it alights with the games actual mechanical depiction of Claustrophobia.
So in other words, his terror built up to a single intense moment where his spark ignited.
I was going to suggest a tweak that required other cards be in your graveyard besides Domri, which would play well with Bloodrush. But the recursion problem remains. Quite frankly checking for things like Domri being tapped sounds really wonky and off for Gruul. I would sooner check for creature power or something else actually on-theme for Gruul. Even Beast tribal would fit Domri a lot better, and at least play into his trip to Naya.
What if Domri builds up counters while in the graveyard? It wouldn't be the first time a card was able to have counters on it in a zone other than the battlefield. Or shoot, what if you exile Domri from the graveyard with counters on him, then return him to the battlefield transformed in a manner similar to Suspend? That way even if Domri does have recursion, it's at least slow recursion.
Ah, but at this point I think it better to capture Domri's general mechanical identity, which has to do with summoning Beasts and other creatures to fight.
How about sparking him when you control a creature with high enough power? That feels Gruul. And it can play into the Bloodrush theme.
Domri, Gruul UrchinRG
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman Bloodrush - RG, Discard ~: Target attacking creature gets +2/+1 until end of turn.
At the beginning of your end step, if Domri is on the battlefield or in your graveyard and you control a creature with power 5 or greater, exile Domri, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control.
2/1
I realized that using hybrid for Gruul Urchin's Bloodrush effectively meant his PW half had to be treated as though it were hybrid, so I changed the cost to require both colors. And to help balance Clan Beastcaller out, we'll make him extra creature-dependent:
Domri, Clan Beastcaller (R/G) Legendary Planeswalker - Domri
+1: Add RG. Spend this mana only to cast creature spells.
-3: Choose any target, then tap an untapped creature you control. That creature deals damage equal to its power to that target.
-7: Draw cards equal to the greatest power among creatures you control and you may gain that much life.
4
I like that this version plays well with Naya's power 5 theme. Of course, it helps that the creature side currently references it directly.
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
That looks good, but it still has the biggest problem of the original. You can easily and repeatedly recur the walker. The only way I see salvaging the whole graveyard/bloodrush part is to make the transforming part of the bloodrush, and push the requirement to 6 or his buff down to 1.
Bloodrush - RG, discard ~: Target attacking creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn. If you control a creature with power 5 or greater exile ~ from your graveyard, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control.
I chose to go with +1/+1 so that Domri is actively bad as a creature because he is just a child. This does give a strange flavor of him sacrificing himself or cooperating with someone to ignite his spark. To salvage the flavor of being buried you change the condition from checking a creatures power to looking for something in the graveyard to symbolize being buried deep. The harder the condition the stronger the walker.
Also green and red getting creature recursion means nothing here. You aren't recuring a creature you are recuring a planeswalker.
That looks good, but it still has the biggest problem of the original. You can easily and repeatedly recur the walker. The only way I see salvaging the whole graveyard/bloodrush part is to make the transforming part of the bloodrush, and push the requirement to 6 or his buff down to 1.
Bloodrush - RG, discard ~: Target attacking creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn. If you control a creature with power 5 or greater exile ~ from your graveyard, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control.
I chose to go with +1/+1 so that Domri is actively bad as a creature because he is just a child. This does give a strange flavor of him sacrificing himself or cooperating with someone to ignite his spark. To salvage the flavor of being buried you change the condition from checking a creatures power to looking for something in the graveyard to symbolize being buried deep. The harder the condition the stronger the walker.
So, he sparks in the middle of combat, when you can't activate his abilities? I get the reasoning behind the +1/+1, but for RG, even with the PW attached at the back end, that seems kinda meh. I would at least make Gruul urchin a 1/1 Trample then, so he could also be a good Bloodrush target.
Ultimately Domri doesn't have to have Bloodrush, I just thought it a neat way to tie his Guild's mechanic and his own backstory together.
Also green and red getting creature recursion means nothing here. You aren't recuring a creature you are recuring a planeswalker.
At the end of your turn (though I'm thinking I'll change that to upkeep), with abilities that greatly depend on creatures and with loyalty costs that make the recursion hard to abuse (so you can't, say, use Doubling Season to fire off his ultimate, then bring him back and do it again on your next turn).
I think I'll swap Bloodrush out for a psuedo-Bloodrush effect that puts a +1/+1 counter on the attacking creature, so that way it can still play into Domri's trigger at the beginning of your upkeep. As a bonus, it plays nicely with all the other +1/+1 counter mechanics among Ravnica's guilds.
Domri, Gruul UrchinRG
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman
Trample RG, Discard ~: Put a +1/+1 counter on target attacking creature. That creature gains trample until end of turn.
At the beginning of your upkeep, if Domri is on the battlefield or in your graveyard and you control a creature with power 5 or greater, exile Domri, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control.
1/1
MTGS Wikia Article about "New World Order"
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
PSA to everyone who keeps forgetting about the Reserved List:
You're on a website dedicated to talking about MtG. You're only a few keystrokes away from finding out what cards are on the Reserved List. You're also only a few keystrokes away from finding out why some cards on the Reserved List got foil printings in FtV, as Judge promos, or whatnot, as well as why that won't happen again. Stop doing this.
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Domri, Gruul Urchin RG
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman
Bloodrush - (R/G), Discard ~: Target attacking creature gets +2/+1 until end of turn.
1RG: Exile Domri from your graveyard, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control. Activate this ability only anytime you could cast a sorcery.
2/1
I like the idea of using a Gruul guild mechanic on Domri, the very mechanic Gruul had when Domri was first introduced in Gatecrash no less. Domri himself is a bit of a runt due to still being a teenager, so his Bloodrush ability doesn't provide much, but it doesn't cost much either. Originally his spark ability was an upkeep trigger that checked if he was in your graveyard, but that would effectively make him a 1-drop planeswalker, so I opted for the safer approach here.
Domri, Clan Beastcaller
(R/G) Legendary Planeswalker - Domri
+1: ~ deals 1 damage to each opponent. For each player dealt damage this way, add R or G.
-3: Create a 4/4 red and green Beast creature token with trample, then destroy up to one target artifact or enchantment.
-X: Search your library for a creature card with converted mana cost X or less and put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle your library. That creature gains haste until end of turn. Return it to its owner's hand at the beginning of the next end step.
4
The first ability works well with Bloodthirst while also ramping you mana, especially in multiplayer. The second ability represents well the destructive, chaotic nature of the Gruul while also playing into Domri Rade's shtick as a beastcaller. The third ability is a fun little tutor that cheats the creature onto the battlefield for a turn, not unlike what Nahiri, the Harbinger does.
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
The planeswalker side is all too busy for what is effectively a 3 mana planeswalker. Both the +1 and the -3 should really only keep one of the two abilities you're giving each one. Pinging and mana generation are both great +1 options on their own, but they're funky and a little confusing when you staple them together like that. The -3 is altogether way too powerful for even an ability ascribed to a 5 mana planeswalker. How many small minus abilities have both token generation and removal rolled into one? Again, choose one of the two effects for the ability between making a 3/3 (to conform to the more common token) beast token or artifact/enchantment removal, and not in a modal sense, either. Just like Ral, you have to keep the cost of the planeswalker you want to make in mind, especially if you want to make the transformation condition really easy like this. Also, there's nothing wrong with a little simplicity. Don't feel like you need to compensate by adding unnecessary extra text to your cards.
I juat want to point out that you seem to entirely ignore that the recursion ability also applies when the planeswalker is put back into the graveyard. Have two of these in your graveyard and you get as many 4/4s for three... and you need only one of these in your graveyard to tutor any number of creatures out of your library as long as they cost 4 or less at a cost of three mana a card - not mentioning the dash attack.
Finally a good white villain quote: "So, do I ever re-evaluate my life choices? Never, because I know what I'm doing is a righteous cause."
Factions: Sleeping
Remnants: Valheim
Legendary Journey: Heroes & Planeswalkers
Saga: Shards of Rabiah
Legends: The Elder Dragons
Read up on Red Flags & NWO
"Activate this ability only if CARDNAME wasn't placed in the graveyard this turn."
Actually, this is even more flavorful, come to think of it.
On phasing:
It's still very difficult to interact with, still gives his user little reason to cast him, and still is almost impossible to get rid of without graveyard hate (he even gets around Grafdigger's Cage, for goodness sake). This design has lots of problems beyond how enormously overpowered it is.
Now that I think of it, the graveyard isn't even the most flavorful way to acting out Domri's spark ignition. He didn't actually die nor really come that close to death in the end. His Claustrophobia just kicked in, that's all.
Technically, red and green both do get creatures able to recur themselves: Phoenixes for red, and green gets various Elementals able to recur themselves like Vengevine and Phytotitan. But I can see how a repeatedly recurrable Planeswalker is developmentally a problem. The easiest fix I can think of is that if the PW half leaves the battlefield, you exile him, or maybe shuffle him into your library, instead. That, or Gruul Urchin does something similar to what I originally thought the Origins sparker legends were going to do: you exile him from the graveyard, then tutor up a Domri planeswalker card. But I'd rather keep the card a DFC if possible.
As for the PW face, I understand the balance issues. The easiest fix there is to simply raise the cost of the transformation ability, since I feel each ability conveys a flavorful aspect of Domri and the Gruul. However, raising the cost also makes Clan Beastcaller less of an ideal Bloodthirst enabler. Not that he has to enable every Gruul mechanic at once, but it's nice when a Guild planeswalker is able to play well with all of their Guild's mechanics, as Ral, Izzet Viceroy and Vraska, Golgari Queen do.
The only ability I might agree is too complex is the second ability; if I had to sacrifice one of the two halves, it would be the removal half, as the Beast token plays into Domri being a Clan Beastcaller. It's okay for a PW to create a unique type of token, and a 4/4 RG Beast with trample seems like the kind of token the Gruul could easily get to create with a couple cards. For example:
Beastbash 4RG
Sorcery
Choose target creature an opponent controls, then create a 4/4 red and green Beast creature token with trample. The token fights that creature.
Beastbreak 4RG
Sorcery
Destroy target artifact or land, then create a 4/4 red and green Beast creature token with trample.
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
Unlike the other flip walkers it wasn't a single intense moment that ignited Domri's spark, it was the building terror of being buried alive. To capture this same flavor you can take several turns to transform, this allows you to significantly push the walker side while keeping the creature side 1 mana. Something like "Domri, Gruul Urchin doesn't untap during your untap step. At the begining of your upkeep if Domri is tapped put a something counter on him. If he has two or more counters exile Domri, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control."
This. Solves the myriad problems inherent to being an ability that activates while in the graveyard, and it alights with the games actual mechanical depiction of Claustrophobia.
I'm going to contest you on a couple points here:
Now the balancing issues I acknowledge are a problem, and I'm looking for a solution that doesn't sacrifice the overall theme and flavor of the character. If it isn't going to capture Domri's story correctly, it might as well not be Domri.
So in other words, his terror built up to a single intense moment where his spark ignited.
I was going to suggest a tweak that required other cards be in your graveyard besides Domri, which would play well with Bloodrush. But the recursion problem remains. Quite frankly checking for things like Domri being tapped sounds really wonky and off for Gruul. I would sooner check for creature power or something else actually on-theme for Gruul. Even Beast tribal would fit Domri a lot better, and at least play into his trip to Naya.
What if Domri builds up counters while in the graveyard? It wouldn't be the first time a card was able to have counters on it in a zone other than the battlefield. Or shoot, what if you exile Domri from the graveyard with counters on him, then return him to the battlefield transformed in a manner similar to Suspend? That way even if Domri does have recursion, it's at least slow recursion.
Ah, but at this point I think it better to capture Domri's general mechanical identity, which has to do with summoning Beasts and other creatures to fight.
How about sparking him when you control a creature with high enough power? That feels Gruul. And it can play into the Bloodrush theme.
Domri, Gruul Urchin RG
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman
Bloodrush - RG, Discard ~: Target attacking creature gets +2/+1 until end of turn.
At the beginning of your end step, if Domri is on the battlefield or in your graveyard and you control a creature with power 5 or greater, exile Domri, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control.
2/1
I realized that using hybrid for Gruul Urchin's Bloodrush effectively meant his PW half had to be treated as though it were hybrid, so I changed the cost to require both colors. And to help balance Clan Beastcaller out, we'll make him extra creature-dependent:
Domri, Clan Beastcaller
(R/G) Legendary Planeswalker - Domri
+1: Add RG. Spend this mana only to cast creature spells.
-3: Choose any target, then tap an untapped creature you control. That creature deals damage equal to its power to that target.
-7: Draw cards equal to the greatest power among creatures you control and you may gain that much life.
4
I like that this version plays well with Naya's power 5 theme. Of course, it helps that the creature side currently references it directly.
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.
I chose to go with +1/+1 so that Domri is actively bad as a creature because he is just a child. This does give a strange flavor of him sacrificing himself or cooperating with someone to ignite his spark. To salvage the flavor of being buried you change the condition from checking a creatures power to looking for something in the graveyard to symbolize being buried deep. The harder the condition the stronger the walker.
Also green and red getting creature recursion means nothing here. You aren't recuring a creature you are recuring a planeswalker.
So, he sparks in the middle of combat, when you can't activate his abilities? I get the reasoning behind the +1/+1, but for RG, even with the PW attached at the back end, that seems kinda meh. I would at least make Gruul urchin a 1/1 Trample then, so he could also be a good Bloodrush target.
Ultimately Domri doesn't have to have Bloodrush, I just thought it a neat way to tie his Guild's mechanic and his own backstory together.
At the end of your turn (though I'm thinking I'll change that to upkeep), with abilities that greatly depend on creatures and with loyalty costs that make the recursion hard to abuse (so you can't, say, use Doubling Season to fire off his ultimate, then bring him back and do it again on your next turn).
I think I'll swap Bloodrush out for a psuedo-Bloodrush effect that puts a +1/+1 counter on the attacking creature, so that way it can still play into Domri's trigger at the beginning of your upkeep. As a bonus, it plays nicely with all the other +1/+1 counter mechanics among Ravnica's guilds.
Domri, Gruul Urchin RG
Legendary Creature - Human Shaman
Trample
RG, Discard ~: Put a +1/+1 counter on target attacking creature. That creature gains trample until end of turn.
At the beginning of your upkeep, if Domri is on the battlefield or in your graveyard and you control a creature with power 5 or greater, exile Domri, then return him to the battlefield transformed under his owner's control.
1/1
Every time I read a comment about "Well if this card had card draw/trample/haste/indestructible/hexproof/life gain...", I think "You're missing the point." They're armchair developer comments that fail to take into account the card's role in the greater Limited and Standard environment. No, it may not be as good as whatever card you're comparing it to. There's a reason for that. Not every burn spell is Lightning Bolt, nor does it need to be or should be.